High-speed rail has improved the travel experience in a growing number of countries—and one entrepreneur wants to take a hyper leap forward. Silicon Valley inventor and businessman Elon Musk made headlines in August 2013 when he announced his interest in developing a 700 mph Hyperloop train that could zoom between L.A. and San Francisco in 35 minutes.

Just about anyone else would have been written off as crazy. But given the bold initiatives that Musk has undertaken in the past (PayPal, Tesla, SpaceX), at least a few pundits are predicting that his solar-powered train is possible.

In the meantime, national railroad companies and at least one private operator have sped ahead with the development of faster conventional electric trains. China, Spain, Italy, and Germany are rapidly increasing their high-speed rail networks. Turkey is linking Ankara, Konya, and Istanbul, while Saudi Arabia will unveil the Haramain High Speed Rail line between Mecca and Medina in 2014.

In America, however, the Acela Express is the only high-speed service in operation. Projects in the works include California High-Speed Rail, XpressWest between L.A. and Las Vegas, and a high-speed line between Chicago and St. Louis. But they won't be boarding passengers any time soon.

If you're traveling abroad, no need to wait: find out where to catch a ride on one of the world's coolest high-speed trains.

Shanghai Maglev Train, China

Chen Fei/Xinhua Press/Corbis

Operating Speed: 268 mph Record Speed: 311 mph Launch Date: 2003

Racing along a scant 19 miles from Pudong International Airport to the Longyang Road Station of the Shanghai metro system, the world's fastest commercial train is also the only magnetic levitation specimen on our list. The SMT's top operating speed of 268 mph makes it faster than any NASCAR, Indy, or Formula One race car. Those interested in learning more about the technology can pop into the Maglev Museum at Longyang station (admission is free with a Maglev ticket).

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CRH380, China

Xinhua Press/Corbis

Operating Speed: 217 mph Record Speed: 303 mph Launch Date: 2010

From a starting point of zero, China has accelerated to develop the world's largest and busiest high-speed rail network in less than a decade. Its 5,800 miles of rapid trains now carry nearly half a billion passengers per year. The CRH380 and its various iterations are all capable of running at a maximum 236 mph on high-speed main lines. Look for them operating on four routes serving Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Wuhan, Nanjing, and Hangzhou.

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ICE 3, Germany

imagebroker / Alamy

Operating Speed: 199 mph Record Speed: 229 mph Launch Date: 2000

While Germany makes many of the world's fastest trains, the launch of its own high-speed rail was delayed a decade by legal battles with environmentalists and other groups. But the Germans are making up ground fast. The super-swift InterCity Express (ICE3) currently runs between Frankfurt and Cologne in the Rhine Valley and Munich and Nuremberg in Bavaria, with nine more high-speed lines under construction or on the drawing board.

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Shinkansen E5, Japan

Haruyoshi Yamaguchi/Corbis

Operating Speed: 199 mph Record Speed: 223 mph Launch Date: 2011

Japan's famous bullet trains come in many different shapes and styles, none faster than the new Shinkansen E5. Nicknamed the Duck-Billed Platypus because of its distinctive nose, the sleek train serves the 419-mile Tōhoku route between Tokyo and Aomori at the northern end of Honshu Island. The E5 also features some of the industry's poshest interiors: Gran Class leather shell chairs that power-recline 45 degrees.

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TGV POS, France

G. Bowater/Corbis

Operating Speed: 199 mph Record Speed: 357 mph Launch Date: 2008

One of the first nations to leap onto the high-speed bandwagon, France introduced its revolutionary Train à Grande Vitesse (TGV) in 1981. There have been numerous upgrades since then, most recently the speedy POS, a hybrid of existing TGV Réseau passenger carriages with brand-new Alstom locomotives. The train operates on two lines—LGV Rhin-Rhône in eastern France and LGV Est between Paris and Strasbourg—with more lines on the way. The POS set a world speed record for travel on conventional rails of 357.2 mph during test runs in 2007.

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AVE Series 103, Spain

Pedro Antonio Salaverría Calahorra / Alamy

Operating Speed: 193 mph Record Speed: 250 mph Launch Date: 2006

Spain's Alta Velocidad Española (AVE) service is known for its duck-billed Talgo trains. But even faster are the new Siemens Velaro Series 103 units that race between Barcelona and Madrid in two hours and 38 minutes. Over the past two decades, Spain has transformed its rail service from one of Western Europe's slowest and least efficient into the continent's largest high-speed network, spanning 1,900 miles and nearly every major Spanish city.

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Sancheon (KTX2), South Korea

Prisma Bildagentur AG / Alamy

Operating Speed: 190 mph Record Speed: 217 mph Launch Date: 2010

Korail's high-speed Sancheon trains make the trip between Seoul and the southern port cities of Busan and Mokpo in less than three hours. Manufactured by Hyundai, the trains take nearly seven minutes to accelerate from zero to 190 miles per hour but need just 1.2 minutes to come to a complete stop. And they've got competition: the KTX3 will have a maximum speed of 250 mph when it debuts in 2015.

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ETR 500 Frecciarossa (Red Arrow) and ETR 575 AGV, Italy

Italy offers two competing high-speed rail services—the public Red Arrow and the private Automotrice à Grande Vitesse (AGV)—on the same tracks. The trains already connect Turin, Milan, Florence, Rome, Naples, and Venice; a new line between Venice and Milan is under construction. Look for a next-generation ETR 1000 (with an operating speed of 220 mph) to overtake them by the end of 2014.